Mathematical Perspectives on Theoretical Physics: A Journey from Black Holes to Superstrings

Presenting the basics of mathematics that are needed for learning the physics of today, this book describes briefly the theories of groups and operators, finite- and infinite-dimensional algebras, concepts of symmetry and supersymmetry. It then delineates their relations to theories of relativity and black holes, classical and quantum physics, electroweak fields and Yang-Mills. It concludes with a chapter on (the complex theory of) strings and superstrings and their link to black holes - an idea that fascinates both the physicist and the mathematician.